The Orange County Commissioners decided Tuesday to push back any action they might take following a Visit Orlando audit to December.
The audit conducted by the Orange County Comptroller’s Office claims that Visit Orlando misspent taxpayer money by using tourist development tax dollars for private company expenses, including rent, shoes, an expensive dinner party, and more.
The Tourist Development Tax, or TDT, is a 6% tax on hotel stays and other short-term rentals in the county. Visit Orlando is the region’s marketing organization that uses TDT dollars to market the area to visitors.
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said commissioners need more time to meet with Visit Orlando and the Orange County Comptroller’s Office. He wants everyone to be in agreement about next steps for Visit Orlando, whether that’s changing its contract with the county or requiring it to pay back misspent dollars.
“County staff needs to have the opportunity to do some research and work with the Comptroller and work also with Visit Orlando on what any modification should look like,” said Demings.
A Comptroller report based on the audit and presented to commissioners this week estimates Visit Orlando could owe $20 million in tourist development tax dollars since 2019.
The report made several recommendations, including that the county should require a county staff member to have oversight over Visit Orlando’s usage of tourist development tax dollars, for Visit Orlando to reconsider how it calculates return on investment or ROI, and for Visit Orlando to get permission from the commissioners before engaging in lobbying in Tallahassee.
It also recommended that Visit Orlando pay back any misspent tourist development tax dollars.
Visit Orlando President Casandra Matej, who spoke in front of the commissioners, said she’s grateful for the audit as it’s an opportunity to make improvements, and that she’s willing to work alongside the county and Comptroller’s Office to comply with any recommendations.
Watch the full BCC meeting where the Visit Orlando audit was addressed:
“Visit Orlando is a leader in travel and tourism, and we're very proud of our strong reputation. We're proud to be among one of the top-performing and award-winning destination marketing organizations in the country,” said Matej.
She said she’s optimistic about travel forecasts to Orlando, but there has been a slowdown in some sectors when it comes to visiting Central Florida, one reason why she said Orlando needs Visit Orlando and the marketing work it does right now.
Most of the public comments Tuesday were from people who support Visit Orlando, which included hoteliers and restauranteurs. But there were a handful of residents who said TDT dollars should be used to help solve the local homelessness problem.
Governor Ron DeSantis recently announced a record-breaking 34.4 million travelers to Florida in the second quarter of 2025.
“Florida continues to lead the way as the nation’s top travel destination,” said DeSantis. “People from all over the world come to the Free State of Florida to take advantage of our top-tier attractions, great weather, and our commitment to public safety. ”
Domestic travelers accounted for almost 92% of travelers from April to June of this year. Overseas visitors rose by slightly more than 11% compared to the same quarter of 2024. But an analysis of the numbers by Visit Florida found Canadian visits were down by 20%.
Some Canadians are boycotting American products and visits to the States after President Donald Trump’s push to make the country the 51st state.
Read the full Visit Orlando audit here:
